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Thursday 1 September 2016

Social Networking : Boon or Bane


The evolution of human kind always went hand in hand with technology. Today, even the interactions between people are made easier via the social networking sites. The current generation is growing up with tablet computers, hi-tech mobiles and online friends around them. This turned to be the most relevant reason for people getting close with social networking sites. The number of social networking website is soaring day by day. Some interactive sites such as Twitter, Facebook and Instagram made the social media a vital aspect of people’s life. They help to create friends worldwide. It also opens a wide range of opportunities to develop business spaces globally. Entrenchment of online businesses are also sustaining strongly through social networking sites. People can share pictures, videos and sensible messages in these. The freedom of speech over the internet allows more people to access the social networking websites world wide. Communication over the internet is more accessible since distance is not a barrier over here. For every good, there exists evil. Obviously, there are inducements which lead the governments of many countries , to think over banning social networking sites. Indubitably, there are people with powerful brains who bullies such websites. This makes social networking unsafe and an obvious threat. These sites also allow seemingly trivial gossips to be distributed to a world wide audience. People should always be aware that the online conversations are not transient. Social networking should never turn to be an escapism, but an evolution. Now a days, as science and technology develops people are getting busy with their social life rather than having a life with its core meaning. Let the world evolve but think enough before you take a step. Live the life with a life that beats in peace and keeps the relations alive. Works Cited: www.googleweblight.com www.askwriter.com www.studyfreak.com

GST: Advantages and Disadvantages


The goods and service tax or GST is a taxation system where there is a single tax in the economy for goods and services. The GST is basically an indirect tax that brings most of the taxes imposed on most goods and services, on manufacture, sales and consumption of goods and services under a single domain at the national level. In the present system taxes are levied separately on goods and services. The GST is a consolidated tax based on a uniform rate of tax fixed for both goods and services and it is payable at the final point of consumption. At each stage of sale and purchase in the supply chain, this tax is collected on value added goods and services, through a tax credit mechanism. Introduction of GST is very much essential in the emerging environment of the Indian economy and it has many advantages. In the GST system, when all the taxes are integrated it would make possible the taxation burden to be split equitably between manufacturing and services. It will also help to build a transparent and corruption free tax administration. GST can also help to diversification of income sources for government other than income tax and petroleum tax. Biggest benefit will be that multiple taxes like octroi, central sales tax, state sales tax, entry tax, license fees, turnover tax etc will no longer be present and all that will be brought under the GST. There are also some disadvantages for this system. Critics say that GST would impact negatively on the real estate market. It would add up to 8 percent to the cost of new homes and reduce demand by about 12 percent. Some economist says that CGST, SGST and IGST are nothing but new names for central excise/service tax, VAT and CST and hence GST brings nothing new for which we should cheer. According to the experts, by implementing the GST, India will gain $15 billion a year. This is because, it will promote more exports, create more employment opportunities and boost growth. The GST rate is expected to be around 14-16 percent. After the combined GST rate is fixed, the state and the centre will decide on the SGST and CGST rates. At present 10 percent is levied on services and the indirect taxes on most goods is around 20 percent. Works Cited: www.mapsofindia.com www.googleweblight.com : “Advantages and Disadvantages of GST”

K. T. U. Challenges and Chances


APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University (initially Kerala Technological University), a State Government University came into existence on May 21, 2014. It’s aim was to give leadership to the technology related policy formulation and engineering planning for the state. It also emphasizes to improve the academic standards of the Gruaduate, Post Graduate and Research Programme in Engineering Sciences, Technology and Management and regulate the academic standards of all colleges affiliated to the University. The main thrust areas of the University are Research, Development and Innovation. APJKTU is aiming to match the equivalence of leading Indian universities like that of IITs, NITs with further ambition to be an internationally accredited University. The university being new has a lot to live up to in Kerala where the multitudes of universities have degraded the quality of engineering studies. It has a very tight curriculum and also an extended moduled syllabus compared to the former universities to keep track of development in the world. As such the students in Kerala who aren’t used to such heavier syllabus and intense education are unable to cope with the prescribed system. The students further feel aggrieved about the fact that the rules where not exactly formulated and the students not informed before enrolment in the university. Thus multitudes of students failed and had extremely poor results in the first semester examinations which put further pressure on the university. It further developed anti KTU sentiment amongthe minds of students. The matter got even worse with the year back system which denied students who lacked credits to enter successive years. Credits can be obtained by passing in each subjects. Unlike the former universities where the students could carry on with their successive semesters even with several back papers. However the university has made all its attempts to be student friendly. It has made several allowances in its system in the first year to ensure the transformation is as smooth as possible. The APJKTU is an internationally accredited university. It has potential to match the standards of IITs and NITs. The university through its intense system aims to enhance and prepare students to meet the engineering standards required in the fast paced and competitive society. The KTU has a credit based year back system. Each semester takes a period of almost four months which includes three and a half months of classes and half a month of examination. After the examination the evaluations are completed within a week after the exam and the results published within two weeks of exam. Thus it is a fast and sophisticated system. Further the supplementary exams are conducted within the following months. The semester end is followed by arts, sports and internships as per the university regulations. The system though had its flaws initially has improved substantially and had an improved result. The university encourages students to be innovative and environment friendly and to further this mindset they brought two subjects like design and engineering and sustainable engineering. The university has a lot to live upto. However it has showed signs of improvements. In some years time KTU aims to be a university bringing laurels to the Indian education system and its students to be future pioneers. For more refer: www.ktu.edu.in

Traffic Accidents in Kerala: Causes and Remedies!


Traffic accident is a major cause of injuries and death worldwide, but it has been declining in developed countries with the advancement in the field of road traffic. In a developing country like India, with a large population and increased traffic the rate of accidents doesn’t seem to get low instead increases on a high, day by day. As a state known for its literacy, Kerala is facing a worst face of road accidents. While having a precise look throughout, the victims are falling under the age group of 20-55. Majority of the accidents are caused due to over speeding of the youngsters. The families lost their bread of life and the conditions are turning catastrophic. Over speeding is not the only cause for accidents in Kerala, careless driving, not obeying traffic rules, un-efficient road works, drunken driving , rash driving of busses and trucks, late night driving, use of mobiles while driving also makes the accident rates soaring. The remedies for the increased rate of accidents in Kerala is turning out to be a subject of prime importance. Implementation of strict traffic rules and following the same, providing awareness classes on safe driving, using helmets and seat belts, using public vehicles instead of private ones helps in dwindling the accident rates. Kerala being the third most accident prone state in India is not too far behind achieving the first. Think, not a glory rather a disaster. Safe driving is quite necessary for us to keep us alive so that we never make our beloved ones cry. Having a life is the gift of god and living it the way it needed to be is our gift towards him. So Drive Safe, Live Life! Works Cited: www.keralapolice.org : “Road Accidents in Kerala” www.newindianexpress.com : “Alarming Rise in Road Accidents in Kerala” (February 29, 2016)

Apple CEO expects to bring back global profits to US next year!


DUBLIN: Apple expects to repatriate billions of dollars of global profits to the United States next year, chief executive Tim Cook said in a radio interview on Thursday, but did not specify exactly how much would be returned. Apple was found to be holding over $181 billion in accumulated profits offshore, more than any US company, in a study published last year by two left-leaning nonprofit groups, a policy critics say is designed to avoid paying US taxes. Asked about the level of tax paid by Apple on profits in 2014, Cook told Irish broadcaster RTE that $800 million had been paid and that billions of dollars more had been provisioned and would likely be returned to the United States next year. "We paid 400 (million dollars) to Ireland, we paid 400 to the US and we provisioned several billion dollars for the US for payment as soon as we repatriate it and right now I forecast that repatriation to occur next year," Cook said in comments broadcast by RTE.

Wednesday 13 July 2016

SRK and Akshay ranked 86 and 94 positions respectively in the Forbes celeb rich list

The Forbes celeb rich list has been topped by American singer Taylor Swift with an earning of $170 million. Bollywood superstars Shah Rukh Khan and Akshay Kumar are also among the world's highest-paid celebrities of 2016, according to an annual list by Forbes. Shah Rukh Khan ranks 86th on the list with earning of $33 million, while Akshay comes on the 94th spot with $31.5 million earnings. Akshay had been moved down in the current list with respect to last year ranking (76th). Forbes said the world's 100 highest-paid celebrities pulled in $5.1 billion pre-tax during the June 2015-2016 scoring period.

Tuesday 12 July 2016

Know how classical movie camera works!!!!

The basic science behind the movies is all about how our eyes and brains work.
When our eyes sees a series of still images in quick succession, each image is hold of a while after it disappears and even as next one starts to replace it. These two images blur together to make a single moving image. This is known as Persistence of Vision.
In 19th century toy makers use the concept of persistence of vision to make new toys. One such toy was called zoetrope. It is a rotating drum, inside of which a long strip of paper with pictures drawn to it. Then you rotate the drum to make the pictures blur together and looked down through the slits to watch them. You have noticed this toy in latest movie Conjuring, in this movie Janet and her brother plays with it.

Classical movie cameras are largely mechanical and capture images on moving plastic film. Modern video cameras and camcorders work more like digital cameras and capture images digitally instead. In a standard film camera, you have to wind the film on so it advances to the next position to capture another photograph. But in a movie camera, the film is constantly moving and the shutter is constantly opening and closing to take a continuous series of photographs-about 24 times each second.
Source:gridclub.com

The unexposed movie film starts out on the large reel at the front and it is passed over guide rollers and spring –loaded pressure rollers that hold it firmly against the central sprocket. The sprocket’s teeth lock into the holes on the edge of the film and pull it precisely and securely through the mechanism. The light from the scene being filmed enters through the lens and passes into a prism, which splits it in half. Some of the light continues on through the shutter and hits the film, exposing a single frame of the movie. The rest of the light takes the lower path, bouncing down to a mirror. The shutter is like a mechanical eyelid that blinks open 24 times a second. The shutter is driven by same mechanism that turns the sprocket. More pressure rollers hold the exposed film against the lower part of the central sprocket. The teeth on the sprocket pull the exposed film back through the camera. Light redirected by the mirror exits through the lens and viewfinder so the camera operator can see what he is filming. The guide rollers take the exposed film back up toward the upper reel. The large upper reel at the back collects the exposed film.
When video recording was invented, photographic film was replaced by the magnetic video tape, which was simpler, cheaper, and needed no photographic developing before you could view the things you have recorded. Modern camcorders use a light sensitive microchip called Charge Coupled Device(CCD), to convert light coming through the lens into numerical format. The more working of the digital camera is presented in our article Digital Cameras.

Know how classical movie camera works!!!!

The basic science behind the movies is all about how our eyes and brains work.
When our eyes sees a series of still images in quick succession, each image is hold of a while after it disappears and even as next one starts to replace it. These two images blur together to make a single moving image. This is known as Persistence of Vision.
In 19th century toy makers use the concept of persistence of vision to make new toys. One such toy was called zoetrope. It is a rotating drum, inside of which a long strip of paper with pictures drawn to it. Then you rotate the drum to make the pictures blur together and looked down through the slits to watch them. You have noticed this toy in latest movie Conjuring, in this movie Janet and her brother plays with it.

Classical movie cameras are largely mechanical and capture images on moving plastic film. Modern video cameras and camcorders work more like digital cameras and capture images digitally instead. In a standard film camera, you have to wind the film on so it advances to the next position to capture another photograph. But in a movie camera, the film is constantly moving and the shutter is constantly opening and closing to take a continuous series of photographs-about 24 times each second.
Source:gridclub.com

The unexposed movie film starts out on the large reel at the front and it is passed over guide rollers and spring –loaded pressure rollers that hold it firmly against the central sprocket. The sprocket’s teeth lock into the holes on the edge of the film and pull it precisely and securely through the mechanism. The light from the scene being filmed enters through the lens and passes into a prism, which splits it in half. Some of the light continues on through the shutter and hits the film, exposing a single frame of the movie. The rest of the light takes the lower path, bouncing down to a mirror. The shutter is like a mechanical eyelid that blinks open 24 times a second. The shutter is driven by same mechanism that turns the sprocket. More pressure rollers hold the exposed film against the lower part of the central sprocket. The teeth on the sprocket pull the exposed film back through the camera. Light redirected by the mirror exits through the lens and viewfinder so the camera operator can see what he is filming. The guide rollers take the exposed film back up toward the upper reel. The large upper reel at the back collects the exposed film.
When video recording was invented, photographic film was replaced by the magnetic video tape, which was simpler, cheaper, and needed no photographic developing before you could view the things you have recorded. Modern camcorders use a light sensitive microchip called Charge Coupled Device(CCD), to convert light coming through the lens into numerical format. The more working of the digital camera is presented in our article Digital Cameras.

Wednesday 6 July 2016

Around u: 7 Digital Camera!!

A camera is an optical instrument for recording and capturing images, which can be stored locally, transmitted to another location or both.In the fifth century B.C, the Chinese philosopher Mo Ti noted that a pinhole can form an inverted and focusing image, when light passes through the hole and into a dark area. Mo Ti is the first person recorded to have used this phenomenon to trace the inverted image to create a picture.  The Digital cameras store photographs as long strings of numbers, not as patterns of darkness and light used in ordinary film camera. The word camera comes from `camera obscura’, which means “dark chamber”.

Digital cameras works in a completely different way than the ordinary film cameras.  When we press the button to take a photograph with a digital camera, an aperture opens at the front of camera and light enters through the lens. There is no film in a digital camera, instead there is a piece of electronic image sensor, usually a charge coupled device (CCD) or a CMOS sensor that captures the incoming light rays and turn them into electrical signals.
CCD

The light from the object you are photographing zooms into the camera lens. A shutter mechanism controls the length of time that the light enters the camera. This incoming ‘picture’ hits the image sensor chip, which breaks it up into millions of pixels. The sensor measures the color and brightness of each pixel and stores it as number. Thus the digital photography is an enormously long string of numbers describing the exact details of each pixel it contains.
Source:en.wikipedia.org

Following parts are usually found in digital camera:-
Source:www.explainthatstuff.com

 1.Battery compartment: The power required for working of camera is acquired from the batteries inside the battery compartment.
 2:Flash capacitor: The capacitor charges up for several seconds to store enough energy to fire the flash.
 3.Flash lamp: Operated by the capacitor. Xenon flash lamps are usually used.
 4.LED: A small red LED indicates when the self-timer is operating.
 5.Lens: It captures light from the object and focuses it on CCD or CMOS. Convex lenses are used. The telephoto lens is used for sports and wildlife but it is more susceptible to camera shake.
 6.Focusing mechanism: This mechanism is helpful in taking either close ups or distant shots. Some cameras have post focusing. Post focusing means that the pictures taken are then focused later in PC.
 7.Image sensor: This is a light detecting micro chip (CCD or CMOS). It is placed directly underneath the lens.
 8.USB Connector: USB cable is attached here for copying the photos taken, to computer.
 9.SD card slot: A flash memory card can be slide inside it for storing more photos.
Processor chip: The camera’s main digital brain. This controls all the camera functions.
The edit we are doing on the digital photograph using image editing program, we actually is adjusting the numbers that represent each pixel of the image. High quality photograph contains a string millions of numbers, that’s why high quality images often make more enormous file. So technique called Compression is used, which squeezes digital photos so that it can be stored in less memory.
New advanced improvements are happening in the camera industry. Modern cameras with more interesting specs are available in markets nowadays!!.




Monday 4 July 2016

Intro To Rarest Interesting Sport 3 : Street Luge

Street luge is an extreme gravity powered activity that involves riding a street luge board down a paved road or course. Street luge is also known as land luge or road luge.

Street luge was born in Southern California as downhill skateboarders found they could achieve faster speeds by lying down on their skateboards. This early form is now called to as 'laydown skateboarding'. In 1995 the first professional race was held at Signal Hill , California, hosted by U.S. Skateboard Association. The race winner was based on top speed. Later many rules were brought and thus a professional sport named street luge evolved. In the mid 1990s, ESPN's X Games showcased street luge to the world and the sport was originally sanctioned by RAIL, then by International Gravity Sports Association. NBC followed ESPN's lead and created the Gravity Games in which the sport was sanctioned by Extreme Downhill International (EDI). There are now about 1200 active street luge riders in the world.

Street Luger's ride boards in the supine position. The design is according to the rules set forth by different governing bodies. Street luge boards are made from materials such as steel, aluminium,wood and carbon fibre. Actual board design differs as the constructio n rules are very open and allow for many design considerations.
Riders should wear safety equipment such as hard shell helmet with chin strap and face shield or goggles , leather or Kevlar racing suit ,leather or Kevlar gloves , sturdy Shoes..
Race courses are usually held on mountain roads but have been held on city streets as well. Courses can range in lenght from 0.5 to 3miles and vary in layout. Many racing formats such as single elimination with 2,4,or 6 racers at a time, timed trials , mass runs(20 racers at a time) etc. are conducted.

Intro To Rarest Interesting Sport 2 : Speak Takraw

Sepak takraw also known as kick volleyball, is a sport native to Southeast Asia. Sepak takraw use rattan ball and only allows players to use their feet, knee, chest and head to touch the ball.
“Sepak” is the Malay word for kick and “takraw” is the Thai word for a hand woven rattan ball. The game is essentially a kick ball. Also, sometimes misnamed by foreigners as “Shaolin Soccer” however it is an ancient game mainly enjoyed between Thai and Laos.
International play is now governed by ISTAF, the International Sepak Takraw Federation. Major competitions for the sport such as the ISTAF Super Series, the ISTAF World Cup and the King’s Cup World Championship are held every year.
Measurements of courts and equipment often vary among tournaments and organizations that operate from a recreational to a competitive level. There are two types of event categories- the regu and the doubles regu. The regu category is played by three players on each team while the doubles regu is played by two players on each team.

The Sepak takraw sport is played on a similar to badminton double sized court. The net shall be made of fine ordinary cord or nylon with 6cm to 8 cm mesh, similar to volleyball net. The Sepak takraw ball shall be spherical, made of synthetic fibre or one woven layer. Sepak takraw balls without synthetic rubber covering must have 12 holes and 20 intersections, must have a circumference measuring not less from 42 to 44 cm for men and 43 to 45 cm for women.
An official doubles or regu match is won by best of three sets with each set being played up to 21 points. A team event or group event is effectively three regu matches played back to back, using different players for each regu.  A team has to win 2 out of 3 sets to be a winner. In the last third set the change of sides takes place when one team reaches 11 points.

Wednesday 29 June 2016

Intro to interesting sport - Chessboxing

Chessboxing is a sport that combines two traditional sports, chess and boxing. The competitors fight in alternating rounds of chess and boxing. Dutch performance artist, Iepe Rubingh invented Chessboxing. Chessboxing quickly turned into a fully developed competitive sport and is now popular in Germany, India, Great Britain and Russia.

Rubingh's idea to create a sport fusing chess and boxing, originated from the comic book named Froid Equateur written by Enki Bilal- that portrays  a Chessboxing world championship. Rubingh's developed the idea further until it turned into the competitive sport that Chessboxing is today with alternating rounds of chess and boxing and a detailed set of rules and regulations.

The first Chessboxing competition took place in Berlin in 2003. That same year ,the first world championship fight was held in Amsterdam in cooperation with the Dutch Boxing Association as well as the Dutch Chess Federation and under the auspices of the World Chess Boxing Organisation (WCBO) that was founded in Berlin shortly before. Dutch middle weight fighters Iepe Rubingh and Jean Louis Veenstra faced each other in the ring. Rubingh won the fight in 11th round going down in the history books as the first ever World Chessboxing Champion. The same goes for the Chess Boxing Club Berlin, created in the following year(2004), that is the first of its kind mailing Berlin the birthplace of Chessboxing.

Chessboxing first received credit from the international Chess Federation FIDE, in April 2008, it's president, Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, took part in Chessboxing demo fight in Elista. At the same time the Chessboxing community began to grow globally at even faster rate. In 2011, the first international club matchup took place with Berlin and London in the ring. London came out the winner with 2:1 won bouts.

The Chessboxing organisation India was founded in 2011 by kickboxing official and former Indian kickboxing and karate champion Montu Das. With this, the growth of Chessboxing in Asia gained momentum with the first Chessboxing Organisation in Western Asia.
At the same time , the process of turning Chessboxing professional reached a milestone. The 2013 World Championship in Moscow was the first Chessboxing event organised and marketed by Chess Boxing Global.

A Chessboxing fight consists of 11 rounds, 6 rounds of chess and 5 rounds of boxing. Chess and boxing rounds alternate, begining and ending with a round of chess. Each round lasts 3mins , regardless of whether it involves chess or boxing. The total amount of chess playing time is 18mins, making it 9mins each player. After each chess round ,the exact setup is digitally recorded and repositioned before the following chess round. The breaks in between the Chess and boxing rounds usually last 60 seconds. The duration of the rounds and overall fight time in amateur Chessboxing fights can change to somedegree ,as in for example youth tournaments and exhibition fights.

A chessboxer must have strong skills in both Chess and boxing in order to be permitted to compete in a professional Chessboxing fight. The current minimum requirements to fight in a Chess Boxing Global event include an Elite rating of 1600 and a record of at least 50 amateur bouts fought in boxing or another similar martial arts. Fighters have to mainly train in speed chess. However Chessboxing is not only the ability to master two sports but above all, being able to withstand the constant switch from a full contact sport to a thinking sport, round after round. This switch becomes extremely hard for the athlete as the fight goes on and he becomes tired. 

Tuesday 28 June 2016

Know how 3D works!!

3D films trick your brain, bringing projected images to life in fuol three dimensional glory. If you look at an object near you and close your left and right eyes in turn ,you will see each has a slightly different view of the surroundings. Your right eye alsees a bit more of its right side, and your left eye see a bit moreof it's left side. These two images are fused by the brain allowing you to see in three dimensions. This is known as stereoscopic vision.
To create a similar effect. 3D films are captured using two lenses placed side by side, or by producing computer generated images to replicate the same effects. In old fashioned 3D films ,footage for the left eye would be filtered using a red lens filter, producing a red image ,and the footage for the right eye would be shot using a blue filter, resulting a blue image. The images from the projectors are then superimposed on the cinema screen.

3D glasses with blue and red filters ensured viewers left and right saw the correct image, the red filter would only let red light through to your left eye, and the blue filter would only let the blue light through to your right eye. These two slightly different images are combined by the brain to create the illusion of 3D. The old fashioned 3D films couldn't make full use of the colour.

Therefore in modern 3D films ,polarised light is used instead of  red and blue light.
A polarised light wave vibrates only on one plane. The unpolarized light can be transformed into the polarised light using the polarising filter.

A polarising filter has tiny parallel lines etched into it. These lines will only let the light vibrating on particular plane through. as with old fashioned 3D, the film is recorded using two camera lenses sat side by side. But in the cinema ,the two reels of film are projected through different polarised filters. So the images destined for viewers left eyes are polarised on a horizontal plane, whereas images destined for the right eyes are polarised on a vertical plane.
Thus these filters seperate out the two images,giving each eye sees a slightly different perspectives and fooling the brain so as to obtain a three dimensional view.!

Monday 20 June 2016

Around U :6 IMAX

IMAX  (an acronym for image maximum) is a motion picture film format and a set of cinema projection standards created by Canadian company IMAX Corporation and developed by Graeme Ferguson,Roman Kroitor,Robert Kerr, and William C  Shaw. IMAX  has the capacity to record and display images of far greater size and resolution than conventional film systems.
Source: www.London pass.com
IMAX is the most widely used system for special venue film presentations. There are over 1061 IMAX theaters in 67 countries.
During Expo 67 ,in Montreal, the National Film Board of Canada's In  the Labyrinth and Ferguson's Man and the Polar Regions both used multiprojector, multi screen systems. Each encountered technical difficulties that led them to found a company called "Multiscreen", with a goal of developing a simplar approach. But later it became clear that a single large-screen image had more impact than multiple smaller ones and was more viable product direction, Multiscreen changed its name to IMAX.
Tiger Child ,the first IMAX film ,was demonstrated at Expo '70 in Osaka,  Japan. The first permanent IMAX installation was bulit at Cinesphere theater at Ontario Place at Toronto.
The IMAX cinema process increases the image resolution by using larger film frame, in relative terms,a frame of IMAX format film has three times the theoretical horizontal resolution of a frame of 35mm film. To achieve such increase resolution ,which IMAX estimated at approximately 12 thousand lines of horizontal resolution (12k), 65mm film stock passes horizontally through the IMAX movie camera ,15 perforations at a time. At 24 frames per second(fps),this means that the film moves through the camera at 102.7 meters per minute (just over 6 km/hr). In a conventional 65 mm camera ,five perforations at a time or ,34 meters per minute.
The IMAX format of widescreen cinema , the movie image is taller than its wide ,given the film frame dimensions of 69.6mm × 48.5mm. To match the standard image resolution of the moving image produced with the film speed of 24fps, an IMAX  film requires three times the lenght ofvfilm stock required for a 65mm film of comparable scope and cinematic technique.
In 2011 , IMAX announced a 4K 3D digital camera with the similar wide resolution of regular IMAX film cameras. The IMAX format is generally called "15/70" film, the name referring to the 15 sprocket ,holes or perforations per frame. The film's bulk requires horizontal platters ,rayheer than conventional film reels. The IMAX  platters range from 1.2 to 1.83 meters diameter to accommodate 1 to 2.75 hours of film. Platters with a 2.5 hour feature film weigh 250 kilograms. IMAX uses ESTAR baed print film in their 15/70 rolling kiip film projection systems. ESTAR  based print film provides greater precision.

In order to use the more area ,the  IMAX film dies not include an embedded soundtrack. Instead ,the IMAX system specifies a separate six-channel 35mm magnetic film, recorded and played back on a film follower locked to picture.
Like conventional theaters , IMAX theaters place speakers both directly behind the acoustically transparent screen and around the theater to create a 'surround sound' effect. IMAX also provides a 'top center' speaker in addition to center' speaker found in conventional theaters. This extra channel allows the sound to mix engineers to take advantage of the screen's greater height.

To create illusion of depth ,the IMAX 3D process uses two separate camera lenses that represent the left and right eyes. The lenses are separated by a distance of 64mm ,the average distance between a human eyes. Two separate rolls of film are used to capture the images they produce. The IMAX 3D camera weighs over 113kg.

Variations on IMAX included the 48 fps IMAX HD process ,which sought to produce smoother, more lifelike motion, while also reducing the blurting of moving objects, by doubling the normal film rate. The IMAX HD system was tested in 1992 at Canada pavilion of the Seville Expo '92 with the film Momentum.

Thursday 9 June 2016

2 Interesting!! Rarest!!! Water Sports!!! Stay Amazed!!

Underwater Cycling :-

Underwater Cycling is a racing sport which can be done in a swimming pool or on the beds of oceans or lakes. Riders use specially designed dense bicycles and wear scuba diving gear.There are few types of underwater cycing races. The most common type of race is for riding the farthest distance. In this type of race, each contestant individually ride a course with their own free and record their distance and timings. The stats are then validated and accepted. Another type of race is riding a underwater course against other opponents and  first one to make it in finish line wins.
The riders who get off the bicycle are disqualified. Pushing or hitting other people off their bikes are forbidden. 
About 10 people are allowed to compete in races, a course underwater that stretches out about half -mile. Two watches are provided for each contestant ,for the safety of the contestant in the case of emergency.

The record for cycling underwater has been broken by Italian Vittorio Innocents ,who succeeded in peddaling 213ft under the Mediterranean.. He took nine minutes of deep sea pedalling to reach the 213ft mark.

Chicken Fight :-

Chicken fight is a informal game which is played in water mostly lakes or swimming pools, in which players play the game riding on the shoulders teamheir teammates, and attempt to knock down and seperate the opponents.
The person on top is considered to be the attacker while the person below is considered to be the vehicle. The person below may not use the arms or hands and must rely on the momentum to attack by running into the other team. The person in his/her shoulder is the attacker and may use any means possible of separating the other team or knocking them to the ground. If a team is knocked or separated in any way ,they are required to resign from the game and the last team to remain together is considered the winner.

Sunday 5 June 2016

Around U : 5 Healthy Birth Control Using Contraceptives!!!

According to World Health Organisation, reproductive health means a total well-being in all aspects of reproduction. Therefore ,a society with people having physically and functionally normal reproductive organs and normal emotional and behavioral interactions among them in all sex related aspects might be called reproductively healthy
India was amongst the first countries in the world to initiate action plans and programmes at a national level to attain total reproductive health as a social goal. Introduction to sex education in schools were a part of this programme.

In the last century an all round development in various fields significantly improved the quality of life of the people. The world population which was around 2 billion in 1900 rocketed to about 6 billions by 2000. A similar trend was observed in India too. Our population which was around 350 am llion at the time of our independence reached close to the billion mark by 2000 and crossed 1 billion in may 2000. That means, every  sixth person in the world is an Indian.

The most important step to overcome this problem is to motivate smaller FAM lies by using various contraceptive methods. An ideal contraceptive should be user friendly , easily available ,effective and reversible with no or less side effects. It also should in no way interfere with the sexual drive ,desire and/or the sexual act of the user.
A wide range of contraceptive methods are presently available which could be broadly grouped into the following categories,namely Natural/traditional ,Barrier ,IUDs ,Oral contraceptives, Injectable ,Implants and Surgical methods.

Natural Method

Works on the principle of avoiding chances of ovum and spermseeting. Periodic abstinence is one such method in which the couple's avoid or abstain from coitus from day 10 to day 17 of the menstrual cycle when ovulation could be expected. As chances of fertilisation are very high during this period, it is called the fertile period. Therefore by abstaining from coitus during this period, conception could be prevented. Withdrawal or coitus interruptus is another method in which the male partner withdraws his penis from the vagina just before ejaculation so as to avoid insemination. Lactational amenorrhea method is based on the fact ovulation and therefore the cycle do not occur during the period of intense lactation following parturition. Therefore as long as the mother breast feeds the child fully, chances of conception are almost nil. However ,this method has been reported to be effective only upto a maximum period of six months following parturition. As no medicines or devices are used in these methods ,side effects are almost nil. Chances of failure ,though ,of this method are also high.

Barrier

In barrier methods, ovum and sperms are prevented from physically meeting with the help of barriers. Such methods are available for both males and females. Condoms are barriers made of thin rubber /latex sheath that are used to cover the penis in the male or vagina and cervix in the female, just before coitus so that the ejaculated semen would not enter into female reproductive tract. This can prevent conception. 'Nirodh' is a popular brand of a ndom for the male. Use of condoms has increased in recent years due to its additional benefit of protecting the user from contracting STDs and AIDs. Both the male and the female condoms are disposable ,can be self- inserted and thereby gives privacy to the user. Diaphragms, cervical caps and vaults are also barriers made of rubber that are inserted into the female reproductive tract to cover the cervix during coitus. They are reusable. Spermicidal creams, jellies and foams are usually used along with these barriers to increase their contraceptive efficiency.

Intra Uterine Devices (IUDs)

These devices are inserted by doctors or expert nurses in the uterus through vagina. These intra Uterine Devices are presently available as non medicated IUDs, copper releasing IUDs and hormone releasing IUDs. The hormone releasing IUDs  make the uterus unsuitable for implantation and the cervix hostile to the sperms. Ideal contraceptive for the females who want to delay pregnancy.

Oral Contraceptives (pills)

Oral administration of small doses of either progestogens or progestogen-estrogen combinations is another contraceptive method used by the females. They are used in the form of tablets and hence are popularly called the Pills. Pills have to be taken daily for a period of 21 days starting preferably within the first five days of menstrual cycle. After a gap of 7 days it had to be repeated in the same pattern till the female desired to prevent conception. They inhibit ovulation and implantation as well as alter the quality of verb Cal mucus to prevent / retard entry of sperms. Pills are very effective with lesser side effects and are well accepted by females. Saheli ,the new oral contraceptive for the female contains a non steroidal preparation. It is a 'once a week' pills with very few side effects and high contraceptive value.
Implants
Progestogens alone or in combinations with estrogen can be also used by females as injections or Implants under skin. Administration of progestogens or progestogen-estrogen combinations or IUDs within 72 hrs of coitus have been found to be very effective as emergency contraceptive as they could be used to avoid possible pregnancy due to rape or casual unprotected intercourse.

Surgical Methods

Also called sterilisation are generally advised for the male / female partner as a terminal method to prevent any more pregnancies. Surgical intervention blocks gamete transport and thereby prevent conception. Sterilisation procedure in the male is called 'Vasectomy' and in the female , 'tubectomy'. In Vasectomy , a small part of the vas deferens is removed or tied up through a small incision in the scrotum where as in tubectomy' , a small part of fallopian tube is removed or tied up through a small incision in the abdomen or through vagina. These techniques are highly effective bit their reversibility is poor.



WORLD ENVIRONMENTAL DAY 2016

 TODAY, June 5 - World environmental day!!The day is celebrated globally to raise global awareness to protect and preserve nature and earth.This is basically run by the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP).We know that we should conserve our resources which helps us in lessening the impact of human activities on the natural ecosystem.We are well aware that its our prime need to conserve the earth from the present strategy.Most of all, deforesting 364 days and planting trees for the rest one day would never make up the situation..!!
As in every year, this year too have got a theme for environment day--"Join the RACE to make the world a better PLACE". Yes.. this is obviously a race to make up our dying world.The astonishing fact is that even the very common food stuffs are getting extinct from this so called blue planet.
There are some food stuffs that get deprived off due to certain climate changes and other changes in our environment.Honey is one of them.This is because, the temperature changes that occur in the earth decreases the migrating capability of bees and also many of the population died off.This is followed by choclates.The temperature changes and weather approximities are behind the low production of cocoa which makes way for the production problems in choclate industry.Scientists predicts that the choclate production will be significantly diminished by the year 2030..!Environment changes also affect the production of coffee.High temperature and extreme conditions leads to coffee rust and fungus.Depleting water supplies also cause problems.Even the future of seafood is on vague.Global warming lead the temperature of sea to rise suffiiently for the marine species to decline.This would defnitely lead to the decline in sea food.While the depriving of our favourite foods take place, the production of those of no need is increasing!!
         This year, the day also focus on protecting the wild life. "Go Wild for Life and focuss on the fight against illegal wild life traits!!" The theme completely emphasise on the protection of the endangered wild life species from being extinct.Poaching smuggling and illegal trades in wild life are driving various species to the brink of extinction.
Apart from all those themes and varying concerns about the environment for this particular day, we must have a bunch of good moves to protect,preserve and maintain our environment.Its well known that the world we live in is not inherited from our ancestors.But we have borrowed this from the future generation.So, it must be our duty and prevlege to take a step to save our earth and mother nature!!

EYES BEHIND MOVIES!!

From 3D and green screens to iMax and CGI ,the steadycam and digital film,the world of cinema has remained ceaselessly dedicated to technological advances through time. With the proliferation of digital platforms ,tech solutions and computer based discoveries in the fields of special effects and filming ,the innovations that lie ahead are certainly no less thrilling than those of the last 90+ years.

Once ,24 frames per second was an industry standard. But now 48 frames per second are made possible by improving filming technology.The Hobbit' became the first film in the Hollywood history to surpass the standard fps rate.
On movies set across the world,Red One Digital cameras are transforming the filming process by replacing the standard 35mm camera with a smaller ,lighter and thus more portable camera solution,without lessening image quality.Now film makers every where can exercise their craft without being anchored down by heavy equipment.
Virtual backlots now allow actors to appear in far flung destinations ,with the help of digital backgrounds,directors can incorporate scenes from their wildest imaginations without breaking their bank or rewriting their scripts.

Nine different cameras were used to make the movies nominated for BestPicture at the 2015 Academy Awards,of those ,six of them come from a company called ARRI.





The ARRICAM ST  noted for its two magazine mounting configurations. It's a hefty unit but it's a popular choice for blockbuster films.

The ARRIcam LT is roughly half the weight of the studio version ,while still offering same exceptional recording quality. This lighter body was designed to allow more mobile steadycam footage.

ARRI's Alexa brings the high quality associated with their film cameras into the digital age. Alexa manages to replicate organic film look shooting directly onto a 16:9 sensor with upgradable components to allow for a future proof design. The Alexa can shoot 1080p footage and features two HD-SDI outputs that allows metadaa to be streamed from the camera while shooting.

The Alexa XT takes the impressive Alexa camera and then adfs a whole rafy of new features to appeal to professional film maker. It has Super 35 sensor with Open Gate and 4:3 sensor modes,the ability to shoot raw footage at 120fps,a new silent fan and refreshed mounting bracket, and it's also lighter than original Alexa.

Alexa XT Plus has integrated radio and lens motor electronics extra ,which allows filmmakers to control the camera remotely.

The 35mm MovieCam Compact ,was one of three cameras made by the MovieCam that saw great success ,before the company was bought by ARRI.
Cameras greatly influence in film making industry.This is just a small article about modern camera used in film making industry.New and very modern equipments are still out there ,and we can expect more and more cameras with awesome specs in the coming days.

Saturday 4 June 2016

Around U : 4 LCD TV

LCD TV uses Liquid Crystal Display technology for the display.The term Liquid Crystal is referred to a state between Liquid and solid but exhibits the properties of both.Liquid crystals can exist in one of several distinct phases. One such phase is nematic phase. Nematic phase is characterized by molecules that have no positional order but tend to orient in specific direction. This arrangement of molecules enables the mefiumvto flow as a liquid. When a voltage is applied to a liquid crystal, the crystal part turns itself within liquid.

LCD screen

Liquid crystal display works on the principle of blocking light rather than emitting light. LCDs require backlight as they do not emit light by them. LCDs are light modifiers, not producers. This characteristic is responsible for the low power consumption of the LCD .LCD display consists of an array of tiny segments called pixels that can be manipulated to present information. An LCD screen is thus made up of many layers kept together. Among layers there is a filter layer that has red,green and blue filters for each pixel  element. A liquid crystal layer is sandwiched between two transparent glass plates are  kept adjacent to colour filter plate. The plates have transparent contact tobeach pixel element's colour. Finally ,there is a light source , often a fluorescent light.

Working of LCD display

In their normal state ,the Liquid crystals will be flat so that no light can pass through them to the coloured filters. When electrical charges flow through them from the glass plate in front to the glass plate behind them ,it causes crystal elements to rotate onto their edges,allowing the light behind them to pass through the coloured filter in front of them. Amount of electrical charge decides how much crystals rotate and how much light pass through them. This is how the mix of red, green ,and blue is controlled to give us the whole range of light that we see. The combination of coloured light with the gray scale image of the crystal created as electric current flows through the crystal forms the coloured image. This image is then displayed on the screen.

Friday 3 June 2016

Amritsar’s Town Hall is site of new Partition Museum


The historic Town Hall in Amritsar, a gracious late-19 century building that stood witness to the unrest in the Punjab after the Jallianwalla Bagh massacre and the Partition, will be the site of the new Partition Museum. This was announced in London today by Kishwar Desai, Chair of the Arts and Cultural Heritage Trust, which has initiated the project and will manage the museum. The museum, Ms Kishwar said, will “raise the veil of silence” that surrounds Partition, an event that saw the displacement of 14 million people, the largest in recorded history. The Museum will be a “space of commemoration and documentation” of the sacrifices made during this mass migration, where “people lost their loved ones and their homes, and were forced to rebuild their lives upon arrival,” she said. Fleeing the mayhem and violence in both countries at the time, the migrants lived in camps and rudimentary shelters till they found alternate accommodation. “The Museum will be a space of memory, healing and reconciliation. It will also memorialise the grit, courage and spirit of that generation,” Ms Kishwar said. The Punjab government has donated one wing of the Town Hall for the project. The museum’s collection of artefacts, art, documents and oral histories will be built through contributions and donations from private and public sources. The British Library, the UK Parliamentary Library, the National Archives, Punjab Archives, Panjab Digital Library, Cambridge University, London School of Economics, Southampton University and Amity University are formally associated with the Partition Museum project. An ongoing exhibition and curtain raiser to the larger project titled Rising From The Dust: Hidden Tales From India's 1947 Refugee Camps is on view at the Visual Arts Gallery in Delhi. It displays some of the art, photographs, artefacts and documents relating to the period.

Paris floods: Seine up to highest level in 35 years, landmarks shut


Paris floods: Seine up to highest level in 35 years, landmarks shut Updated: June 4, 2016 11:36 IST | AP A view of the flooded banks of the river Seine in front of the Eiffel tower in Paris on Friday. Both the Louvre and Orsay museums were closed as the Seine, which officials said was at its highest level in nearly 35 years, was expected to peak sometime later on Friday. | AP French Culture Minister Audrey Azoulay (left) speaks to the media as Louvre Museum head Jean-Luc Martinez (top left) listens as the museum is closed to the public due to the rising Seine River in Paris, France, following days of almost non-stop rain caused flooding in the country, on Friday. | Reuters Visitors read an information sheet about the closing of the Musee de Louvre and tourists being turned away, due to the unusually high water level of the river Seine in Paris on Friday. French officials say that the Seine River is still rising in Paris as France's unseasonable spate of rainfall begins to taper off. | AP The swollen Seine River kept rising on Friday, spilling into Paris streets and forcing one landmark after another to shut down as it surged to its highest levels in nearly 35 years. Across the city, museums, parks and cemeteries shut down as the city braced for evacuations. The Seine was expected to peak in Paris early on Saturday at about 5 meters (16 feet, 3 inches) above normal. Authorities shut the Louvre museum, the national library, the Orsay museum and the Grand Palais, Paris’ striking glass-and-steel topped exhibition centre. “We evaluate the situation for all the (cultural) buildings nearly hour-by-hour,” said Culture Minister Audrey Azoulay, speaking to journalists outside the world-famous Louvre. “We don’t know yet the evolution of the level of the Seine River in Paris,” she said. At the Louvre, home to Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa,” curators were scrambling to move some 2,50,000 artworks from basement storage areas at risk of flooding to safer areas upstairs. The Louvre will stay closed through Tuesday and the Orsay Museum, known for its impressionist art, closed through the weekend.

Muhammad Ali, 'The Greatest Of All Time', Dies At 74


Former heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali, the most important, complex and polarizing athlete of our time, died Friday night at an Arizona hospital. He was 74. He had suffered for decades from Parkinson's disease, a progressive neurological disorder, and was being treated in the hospital in recent days for a respiratory issue. "After a 32-year battle with Parkinson's disease, Muhammad Ali has passed away. . . . The three-time World Heavyweight Champion boxer died this evening," Bob Gunnell, a family spokesman, told NBC News. Ali may not have been the world's greatest athlete, or even the best boxer of all time - though he is certainly in both discussions. What is indisputable, though, is he was the most beautiful athlete we had ever seen, and likely ever will again - beautiful not so much in the common sense of physical attraction, but in the classical sense, the platonic sense. He was beautiful in motion, the way he danced in the ring - the patented Ali Shuffle - as he circled another victim. And he was beautiful in complete stillness, as in the many iconic photographs of him: standing over Sonny Liston in 1965, his arm cocked in rage; leaning on the rope, glistening with sweat, during a break from training; delivering a devastating right hook to Joe Frazier; clowning with the Beatles; mugging for the camera.

Thursday 12 May 2016

Arsenal transfer news and rumours: Gunners eyeing THREE striker options?


PLUS: Jordan Lukaku, brother of Everton striker Romelu, believes his style of play would suit the Premier League - and has admitted to being an Arsenal fan. Arsenal could move for Batshuayi Arsenal are reportedly considering making a bid for Marseille forward Michy Batshuayi after Danny Welbeck was ruled out for nine months. The Daily Star say Arsenal have been watching the Belgian closely this season and will enquire as to his availability this summer. Batshuayi, 22, has scored 21 times in 48 appearances this season but L'OM endured a torrid campaign as a whole, finishing 13th in the table. Lukaku "a fan of Arsenal" Speaking to The Set Pieces, Lukaku said: “Do I see myself as a Premier League-bound? “I don’t know, but it’s a league that would suit me. I have always been a fan of Arsenal, but I am mad about every Premier League club as long as the club doesn’t have to fight against relegation.” The 21-year-old currently plays for Oostende in the Belgian Pro League. Arsenal could turn to Morata Danny Welbeck's devastating injury blow could force Arsenal to step up their pursuit of a new striker, writes MirrorFootball's John Cross. The England man has undergone surgery on his right knee after suffering a serious cartilage injury in Arsenal’s draw at Manchester City on Sunday. The heartbreaking news comes on top of Welbeck missing 10 months with an injury to his other knee and he had only just returned in February. It will also push the Gunners into the market this summer with Juventus striker Alvaro Morata their top target. Arsenal have also looked at Inter Milan striker Mauro Icardi but if Morata - Real Madrid have a buy-back option which may push through the deal - becomes available then he will be their number one. Gunners eye Guirassy Arsene Wenger is eyeing a move for little-known French striker Sehrou Guirassy, writes MirrorFootball's John Cross. Arsenal boss Wenger has been alerted to the 20-year-old Lille starlet, who has impressed while on loan at French second division club Auxerre. In much the way the Gunners signed Yaya Sanogo from Auxerre three years ago at the same age, Guirassy is seen as one for the future. Sanogo has started just two Premier League games and scored just a single goal for Arsenal, while being sent on loan to Crystal palace, Charlton and Dutch side Ajax.

Wednesday 11 May 2016

Around U : 3. Li-ion battery

                                                     LITHIUM- ION   CELL

Li-ion cell is a rechargeable battery in which Li-ionoves between anode and cathode during charging and discharging.It is more popular than other batteries because of the various characteristics of lithium.Li has higher negative value for reduction potential and a lower atomic mass than any other metal.Only 6.94 g of Li is needed to provide one mole of electrons.
In typical litium ion  cell ,the positive electrode is made by using a crystalline mixed oxide Li2O.Co2O3 or LiCoO2.The crystal contains both Li+ ion and Co3+ ion occupying the voids of the oxide array.Such crystals are usually synthesised by hydrolysis of the respective salt under hydrothermal condition.The negative terminal is made of graphite .The electrolyte is a solution of Li salt ,in an organic solvent such as ether or a solid phase polymer electrolyte which can transport Li+ ion.
   Charging:-
            During charging the cell act as an electrolytic cell,the electrical energy is                            converted into chemical energy.
             At Anode (+) :
                    Some Li + ions get removed from the crystal lattice .and in the respective                             lattice site Co3+ ion get oxidized to Co4+ and electrical neutrality is                                         maintained in the lattice.
             At Cathode (-) :
                     The Li ion produced at the Anode get migrated through the electrolyte and                        get reduced to lithium atom at the graphite electrode.Li atoms are inserted                         between the layers of carbon atoms.This so called lithiated graphite                                     , containing no Li metal as such.
   Discharging
              During discharging ,the cell acts as electro chemical cell,the chemical energy is                  converted to electrical energy.When the cell act as electrochemical cell ,LiCoO2                  act as Cathode ,while the graphite act as anode.
Lithium ion cell is based on LiCoO2 has an EMF of 3.7 V.The cell is having high energy to weight ratio.They are used in cell phones,laptop computers,digital camera etc.The cell is not suitable for making large size of battery because of possibility of explosion.
Another type of Li-ion cell has been developed based on active materials like LiFePO4. The cell is having a potential of 3.3 v.The cell is suitable for making large size batteries suitable for automobile application.

Takeaway: does plasma have super powers?


Materials touched by plasma have their physics changed. Here we show a tissue before plasma treatment, the liquid is quickly absorbed. Then the tissue is passed through plasma, it gets a nanoscale chemical coating.

Amsterdam’s Fab City: urban solutions for tomorrow


Imagining tomorrow’s sustainable, self-sufficient city: that is the goal of Fab City, a global project which started in Barcelona two years ago and is currently being tested in Amsterdam. Located at the head of Java Island in the city’s Eastern Harbour District, it includes 50 innovative pavilions, where more than 400 students, professionals, artists and creatives are working on finding solutions to urban issues. Porta Palace is a tiny home on wheels recently completed by a Dutch art and design collective. Fixed on a trailer, this 18 square metre mobile home is built with eco-friendly materials. It is timber-framed and covered with a steel roof, and contains a small living area with a kitchen, a toilet, a shower, and a double bed located over the coffee table. “People are really surprised that there is so much space in such a small house,” says Woonpioners project manager Jelte Glas. “Also, (they are surprised) because we use a lot of glass and it is open and looks so open and interacts really with the environment.” The Porta Palace will set you back approximately 35,000 euros. Wikkelhouse is a module concept house mostly built out of cardboard. Different modules are created which can then be assembled according to the home-owners wishes and needs. Each module is made by gluing 24 layers of cardboard around a rotating house-shaped mould, using eco-friendly glue. The structure is then covered with wood frames to protect it from physical impact and UV rays from the sun. Its developers say the result is a robust sandwich structure with optimal insulation qualities. “This is already a little house that I could live in,” says Oep Schilling, the founder of Fiction Factory, the company behind Wikkelhouse, holding up one module. “But now I want a kitchen, and I want a toilet. So we make this element where it’s all in it: I put my kitchen in it, and I put one behind it (the original module), I put another one behind it and now I have a bedroom. So this is already like a house, which is built within a week.” The price per module is about 3,500 euros. If you add concrete foundations, additional construction elements, a pre-fabricated kitchen, toilet and bathroom, the end price of a home comes to around 70,000 euros. And what about equipping your sustainable home with equally sustainable 3D printed elements? That’s what Dutch company MX3D proposes. It has developed a six-axis industrial robot arm with an advanced welding machine controlled by software. The printer proposes a wide variety of objects made of metal or resin, without the need for support structures. The company’s founder says his 3D technology has a significant advantage over ordinary 3D printers, and wants to prove it by printing a pedestrian bridge made of steel in the centre of Amsterdam. “Normal 3D printers have to operate in a building volume like this (holds hands apart) and we can go meters big. So building a bridge is really a leap from where we are now with the current technique. This is our true innovation,” says Gijs van der Velden, the founder of MX3D. Amsterdam’s Fab City campus is open to the public until June 26.

Girl to be fitted with 3D printed ear in Australia


Two-year old Maia was born with only one ear due to a congenital deformity called microtia, and currently wears a headband that transmits sound to her brain using her skull as a bone conductor. But new 3D technology being developed at Queensland University of Technology in Australia means Maia could soon receive a prosthetic ear that would cost less than a pair of glasses. “She’s full of confidence. She’s full of love and life and I don’t want to take that away from her. It’s obviously going to be heartbreaking but the fact we can actually say no it’s okay, you will have an ear,” says Maia’s mother Chloe. This promising technology is far less expensive than common prosthetic solutions. The whole procedure could cost as little as two hundred dollars per child. If successful, its inventors hope to eventually use it to print other body parts. “Nobody’s ever 3D printed ear prosthetics before. I think the ability to 3D print an ear prosthetic will cost the public less than a pair of glasses,” says Mia Woodruff, Associate Professor at Queensland University of Technology. The project comes in two stages. The first is a short-term ‘cosmetic’ solution: a 3D prosthetic ear is made in medical silicone and attached magnetically or with surgical glue. The long-term stage is far more ambitious and revolves around a complex bioengineering solution. The goal is to develop a procedure for growing a 3D ear from the patient’s own cells using a special bioreactor. After a few weeks of growing, it could then be surgically implanted along with a custom bionic construction. Researchers believe that the 3D printed ears could be available within two years. Though the project is still in its infancy, Maia’s parents are hoping it could deeply change their daughter’s life.

Kiel students take Tetris to a whole new level


It is one of the most successful, and most played, video games of all time, a simple concept that has proved to be of near-universal appeal and which has grown beyond the wildest dreams of its inventor. And now Tetris is even bigger, not to say larger than life. Fans can now play the game on a 15- story building at the University of Kiel campus in northern Germany. Four students dedicated a year of their bachelor’s degrees to creating the display. Project coordinator Jonas Lutz, who initially came up with the idea, explains: “What we have done is we have this high-rise building with 392 windows. We put a light in each of the windows. They are all connected over a network and the internet to a computer that controls each light – making a 1,700 inch display. Then, when you have this display you have to decide what to do with it. We decided to start by playing Tetris, so that’s what we have done.” The LED panels are each 70 centimetres long. Each contains 144 LED lights, meaning that a total of 56,448 LED lights are used in the installation. According to the University, the games use 56.5 kilowatt-hours if played for four hours per night, at a cost of 11.25 euros. The total budget for the project, called “Project Lighthouse”, was 30,000 euros, and it was funded entirely by donations. Most of the budget went on the hardware, the LED light panels and the 196 network communication boxes that connect the lights to the software. Lutz, who is studying for a bachelor’s degree in Business Informatics, has worked unpaid for a year on the project, for five credits towards his studies. So, why did he do it? “Why? Well, mostly for fun. But I also wanted to see what me and the team can do. What have we learnt from our studies? And that is what we came up with,” he says. The resolution is not great compared to most smartphones, but it is certainly enough for Tetris. Two other games have been added; Snake and Pong, and the students are working on adding more. At the moment Lutz and his team just turn the game on for special occasions such as orientation days, university parties and when international guests come to visit.